Conductors Don't Wear Pink by Cambridge Symphony Orchestra

Monday, March 18, 2013 -- Sara Gaynes

Conductors don’t wear pink… or do they? What really makes a Maestro?

by Cynthia Woods, Music Director

As a member of the second generation of women coming up through the ranks of orchestra conductors, I have always counted myself lucky. I wasn’t the first and the door was definitely open. I had many wonderful, supportive teachers; I got jobs right out of school; and orchestral musicians were respectful. So why, unlike other areas such as politics and medicine, were there so few of me, and why was the “woman conductor” such a hot topic? Why are so many still asking the questions "Can they?" "Should they?" and my favorite, "But what on earth are they going to wear?"

While it looks like a rather benign topic on the surface, the clothing issue has become one of my greatest pet peeves on the Maestra front. From the very beginning, I was told by the most well-meaning mentors, yes, go for it, be a conductor, but you know, just don’t look too feminine. Then there were the national conferences and workshops where all the women were huddled off from the men to small rooms to talk about the dangers of wearing a fitted shirt, an open-toed shoe, or God help you, a primary color. We all sat around feeling awkward and baffled. What was so very wrong about dressing like a professional woman? And why, with a room full of eager young male conductors adorned with flip flops and scrappy T’s, were we being singled out with the “how to dress” chat? Some of our most revered conductors have been known for their eccentric looks—the great Leopold Stokowski routinely wore a floor length black cape with red satin lining. Where was all this fashion terror coming from?

The message was clear to me and my female colleagues: It’s OK to be a woman on the podium, as long as you don’t look like a woman on the podium. Put your hair in a bun or cut it off, invest in a wardrobe of ill-fitting navy and black, and ditch the cute shoes. Happily, things are slowly changing; women currently make up 15% percent of all conductors, up from zero. Older and wiser, I wear whatever I like, as long as I think it shows the proper respect for the music and musicians. But we still have a great deal of work to do to change the conversation from what conductors are to who we are. A conductor is not an old man with wild hair wearing a tuxedo on a podium. A conductor is a highly trained, dedicated musician, with a unique musical vision and passion they wish to share with an orchestra. If we are to entice our young women to become the next Maestro, engineer, scientist or CEO, the message has to be clear. Yes, dress professionally, but also be proud to be yourself, whomever and whatever that is, because that is where true leadership begins. And if pink happens to be one of your favorite colors, then so much the better.